WAR

By Dave Walker | July 20, 2022 | Comments 0 Comment

How does God see it? And how should we pray?

I have been wrestling with what has been the hottest topic in the news for months but is now fading somewhat into the background as viewers get weary and want something else to be alarmed about. Of course, I’m talking about the Russia/Ukraine war.

How do I pray about it? What does God say about this phenomenon? What does the Bible say?

Here are my thoughts:

As a prelude, let’s look at the character of God.

THE CHARACTER OF GOD

Firstly,

God is loving.

He doesn’t enjoy seeing His creation suffer. Ezekiel 33:11 says, “’As surely as I live’ declares the sovereign Lord, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways.’”

Death is a consequence of sin, but it’s not what God wants for us.

Secondly,

God is just.

Isaiah 61 says, “I, the Lord love justice; I hate robbery and wrong.”

And Deuteronomy 30:15-18 says, “See, I set before you today, life and good, death and evil. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God……by loving Him and keeping His commandments…. then you shall live and multiply…

But if your heart turns away and you will not hear but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, then…. You shall surely perish.”

War is not what God wants, but it is what He has ordained as a consequence of evildoing. Laws must have consequences, otherwise they are not laws. If you stepped out of a second story window and sometimes you fell to the ground and at other times you did not, the law of gravity would not be a true law. It’s the same with spiritual laws. There must be consequences. We instinctively know this. When you hear of a man raping a baby, doesn’t something inside you rise up and say, “He must be punished for that”?

Let’s apply that to Russia/Ukraine. Are any of them governed by God’s laws?

Russia is a corrupt, oppressive nation, we know that. The Russian Orthodox Church is sanctioned, but severe restrictions and fines are placed on evangelical Christians.

What about the Ukraine? It has been listed as the second most corrupt nation in Europe, is a popular prostitution and sex tourism destination and a world leader in surrogate pregnancies, where babies are sold as commodities.

Can we say, then, from God’s perspective, that war is a consequence of defying the laws of a just God? I think the answer is obvious.

Thirdly,

God is not authoritarian.

In Deuteronomy 30:15, He says, “See, I set before you, life and prosperity, death and destruction.” And He goes on to say, “Choose life!” The choice, and the consequences, are ours.

Fourthly,

God looks after His own.

Read Psalm 91 or Psalm 25:10

We’ve all heard testimonies of His miraculous provision coming out of this war.

Sometimes it’s physical, sometimes supernatural strength to overcome immense obstacles and sometimes His powerful presence, giving us courage even in the face of death, as in martyrdom.

Now, let’s look at THE NATURE OF WAR

THE NATURE OF WAR

There are two aspects I find in the Bible:

Aspect One

Firstly, war concentrates human misery into one place and time, yet it is the same human misery as all the others that result from sin.

The carnage in the Ukraine rightly horrifies us, but did you know that in South Africa there are 50 murders a day? That’s 18,000 murders every year. And 1,000 deaths from road accidents every month? And nearly 4,000 women raped every month? {and these are reported rapes, which, it is estimated are only a third of actual rapes).

When we understand that this is a small microcosm of what is happening world-wide, we realise that war is merely a distillation of what is happening all the time in a fallen world. It’s as though God is saying, “Here’s the fallen world in technicolor. Turn to Me. This is what it’s like without Me.”

Secondly, all these terrible things start from within.

A boy once asked, “Daddy, how do wars begin?”

“Well, take the First World War,” his dad replied. “It began when Germany invaded Belgium.”

Immediately his wife interrupted him, “Tell the boy the truth. It began because somebody was murdered.”

The husband yanked his head towards her, “Are you answering this question, or am I?”

She walked out of the room in a huff and slammed the door. The dad sat and sulked. The boy interrupted the silence, “Daddy, you don’t have to tell me how wars begin. I think I know now.”

James 4:1-3 says, “what causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”

Thirdly, It is the war in our souls that initiates the physical manifestations. Let us see how this plays out in the Russia/Ukraine situation.

Fear. Putin is reacting to the threat of NATO right on his borders.
Greed. Ukraine is the breadbasket of Europe, which was once a huge earner for Russia. Putin wants it back.
Pride. Russia has fallen from a powerful union and Putin wants to restore its glory.
Power. The Ukraine wants to join NATO. There is compelling evidence that it was running a lab similar to Wuhan in collaboration with the United States.

The Bible makes it clear that it is this war for our souls that is at the heart of all wars, whether it is a war in the home or a war between nations. That is where it all starts. The cause is the same.

Ephesians 6:12. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

It’s when we lose this battle for our souls that the physical battles are manifest.

Aspect Two.

In the Old Testament, God used people to wage war to inflict judgement on nations for their wickedness.

He used Israel to judge other nations (see 1Samuel 15:17,18)

He used the Assyrians and Babylonians against a disobedient Israel.

Jesus, however, brought a dispensation of grace. We live in an age of grace, and we, as Christians are to extend that grace. It is not our place to wage war as Christians, whether personally or as a nation. We are told to leave room for God’s wrath (Romans 12: 19)

And God will ultimately judge. He personally will wage war on disobedient nations.

Revelations 19:11-16. “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a White Horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire and on his head or many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, Riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God or mighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”

We do not wage war on the disobedient, we extend grace. However, we should fear for those who reject him, and warn them. “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of an angry God.”

So, how should we pray for the Russia/Ukraine situation?

We need to understand that God is primarily interested in His children. His constant cry throughout the Bible is for people to come to Him, to trust him and to come under the protective umbrella of his laws and his grace. So, the way I pray is:

That through this war, many will be drawn into his Kingdom. Often, it is as we are in a tragic situation where we can no longer help ourselves that we cry out to God. I pray for that to happen, so that they will not only experience his protection, but we’ll have the assurance that if the war kills them, they will be with him.
For his children on both sides of the war. In Russia and in Ukraine, there are Christians who are suffering loss of loved ones, loss of livelihood and shelter. Let us pray for God’s powerful presence and his provision and comfort. God is close to the broken hearted. How many of His people are broken hearted? There was a triumphant sound in the voice of the commentator who reported that they estimate a third of Russia soldiers have been killed. My response was a deep sorrow for all those young lives lost and the mourning parents, wives, and children.
War is a tragedy, but all around the world the same suffering is happening as people abandon God and try to run the world without Him. Let this war stir us to realise what the world is like when we leave God out and let it be a stimulus to call out to God for revival. Let us pray that God will take the initiative and make Himself known as He has done in the past.

A Sense of Destiny

By Dave Walker | September 23, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

(these posts are companion posts to the book God in the ICU)

Chapter One: A Sense of Destiny.

Psalm139: 15,16 “My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of the came to be.”

Quote from God in the ICU: “When I was old enough to understand, and heard them recall the story, (of my miraculous survival) it engendered in me a sense of destiny. God had spared me for a purpose.”

In the retirement complex in which I now live, I have two good friends who live vastly different lives. Dave is lean and bright eyed with an infectious enthusiasm that shines from his bearded face. His zeal for life is contagious. When we pop around spontaneously for a visit, he and his equally dynamic wife Katie greet us with delight, but often they’re away on some adventure, or helping out at the church or with friends in need. One day a friend of theirs, whose wife was away, mentioned that the thing he hated most about his wife being absent was the fact he had to make his own bed in the morning. Dave and Katie knocked on his door at an early hour. When their sleepy friend opened up, they bounced into his house and announced, “We’ve come to make your bed!”

My other friend keeps to himself. He is affable and responds with grace and a sense of humour when we pop over. Yet he’s content to sit by himself day after day in front of the TV. He seems prepared to live out the rest of his days this way, not wanting to die, but without any zest for life.

What is the difference in these friends? Dave and Katie have a sense of destiny. They realise God has a plan for them, and fulfilling that as best they can is energising and life-giving.

Chosen by God

Our sense of destiny starts with an understanding of who we are. It was as I heard the story of how I had miraculously survived a severe malaria illness that should have killed me as a small baby, that I sensed I’d been spared by God for a purpose .

What about you? Do you know, deep in your heart that you have been chosen by God for something especially designed for you? No matter the circumstances of your birth or upbringing, you are important to God, and here for a reason.

God says, in Ephesians 2:10, “We are God’s workmanship (poema — from which the word poem comes — a work of art) created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God has prepared in advance for us to do.”

Sometimes, as I describe in God in the ICU, you might be aware of what that purpose is from early on. At other times it is more difficult. May I suggest a few things that will help?

Finding your destiny

Firstly, as you seek to find it, be other-centred. Jesus has been called “A Man for others.” His plan for you will be in line with His character. So, whether you have a passion for entrepreneurship, for public speaking, for art or engineering — whatever it is, check out how it can be used to benefit others and show them the love of Christ. Let that motivate you. My dream as a doctor was fuelled by pictures of myself at the bedside of the sick, bringing healing to them.
Secondly, follow your passion. God has made each of us uniquely, with our own aspirations. Psalm 37:4 has a double meaning when it says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” It could mean that what you desire, He will give to you, but I wonder whether it is truer to say, as you delight in Him, He will put the desires in your heart that He wishes you to have to fulfill your destiny.
Thirdly, follow your giftings. God equips us for our destiny. I’m writing this with some reservation, because I know of many people who were terrified to speak in public, but, in following God’s calling, became eloquent and pursuasive. However, that, for the most part, was not their main calling but enhanced their vocation as God equipped them when they stepped out in obediance.
Lastly, what doors does God seem to be opening for you? Are you aware of them? Is He shutting doors and opening others?

Whether you feel it or not, you have been hand-picked by God for a purpose. There’s nothing more life-giving than walking into that.

Further Bible reading:

1 Corinthians 7:17 Philippians 2:1-4 1 Peter 2:9-10

Why celebrate?

By Dave Walker | December 22, 2020 | Comments 14 comments

There’s only one cause to celebrate, this year

As 2020 draws to a close, there’s hardly cause to welcome 2021 with any sort of joyful anticipation.

Many, suffering ‘lockdown fatigue’ are being more lax about the precautions set in place to stop the spread of Covid 19, and infections are soaring. In a malevolent twist, the virus has taken advantage of this and mutated to a more virulent form. Death, suffering, bereavement and fear are trampling our planet.

Until this year, Christmas, for many, has merely been a prelude to welcoming the New Year. Perhaps God is urging us, now, to focus on the real reason we celebrate, for if we do that, we can look to the future with optimism.

If God can be compassionate enough to come to earth and identify with us to the extent that He feels our pain, shares our joys, demonstrates the true heart of God and then represents us before the Father to take our punishment, He will surely see us through this turbulent time if we will entrust ourselves into His loving, capable hands.

So, let’s celebrate the real Christmas story, and let the Prince of Peace speak into our hearts.

Real Christmas

God gave His Son that all the world
Would have the chance to be with Him.
His glorious presence now was curled
Within the confines of a womb.

His gift to Man took history
And pulled its course away from Hell
Unfathomable mystery
A love that has no parallel.

And now to celebrate His gift
Throughout the world we also give,
With presents for our families
With parties, food and talk of love.

Yet often in this crazy world
We give our gifts, not knowing why
We break the bank to buy the best
We worry it won’t satisfy.

We party with our families
We eat and drink and stay up late
But if in this we exclude Him
There’s nothing left to celebrate.

It all becomes an empty show
That merely gets us deep in debt
And all the feasting and the hype
Can’t heal our pain, nor our regrets.

For though we share our human love
Forget our woes with food and wine
Our loneliness requires a heart
That’s grateful for a love divine.

We need to know a God who cares
Who wants us all to worship Him
To celebrate the way He’s made
To rescue us from all our sin.

If we party, give our gifts
Ignoring Him who’s paid the way
Then ‘Happy Christmas’ is just words
Whose meaning fades with Boxing Day

For always when we celebrate
A God who came to be with us
The next act hovers in the wings
A Saviour hanging from a Cross.

It’s He who rolled away the stone
Conquered death and rose again
Ascended to His heavenly throne
And lives within the hearts of men

It’s not His birth that gives us joy
But why He came — what it was for
That’s why we’re grateful, celebrate
The Baby on a bed of straw

Do we believe God?

By Dave Walker | November 13, 2020 | Comments 0 Comment

He knows what He’s doing even when we don’t.

Daniel 2:20–22 says:

“Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;
    wisdom and power are his.
²¹He changes times and seasons;
    he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise
    and knowledge to the discerning.
²²He reveals deep and hidden things;
    he knows what lies in darkness,
    and light dwells with him.”

And Daniel 4:25 and 4:32 both say:

“… the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.”

For the sake of establishing the integrity and transparency of the election, I do think the allegations of fraud should be investigated. However, irrespective of the result of the investigation, as Christians, we must believe that God is in control. If Biden is president, the Word of God says that He placed him there. If the courts validate Trump’s claims and it puts him back in, we’ll know God put him back!

Either way, we must believe He gives the kingdoms of the earth to whom He chooses for His purposes. The Word of God says so.

God’s purposes are for His Church

God’s primary interest is His Church. We do not know what He is doing, but I suspect He is purifying His church for His soon coming. We know His Bride must be pure and spotless. Perhaps He will do that by creating a situation whereby we have to trust Him implicitly and be “blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation in which we shine like stars in the universe as we hold out the Word of Life.” (Phil. 2:15,16)

Let’s trust God’s wisdom

Let’s not behave like the world, in anger, bitterness and suspicion, but trust God’s purposes. Jesus did not create a fuss against the plotting and treachery that put Him on the Cross. He entrusted Himself to His Father, and those religious hypocrites and Judas were the agents for the greatest act of mercy and redemption the world will ever know. God is in control. Jesus is described as full of grace and truth. Let’s display those same characteristics .

The darker it gets — and it’s looking pretty dark — the brighter we can shine.

As Nike says, “Just do it.”

God of the Song

By Dave Walker | October 26, 2020 | Comments 0 Comment

Here’s a quote from God in the ICU in the chapter called Trusting God in the Darkness: A Sister’s Heartache:

“Babbie Mason sings a song, the lyrics of which pointed the only way forward. She sings:

God is too wise to be mistaken God is too good to be unkind, So when you don’t understand, When you don’t see His plan, When you can’t trace His hand, Trust His heart.

We could not understand, so we had to lean on His character. We had to look back on His faithfulness in dealing with us in the past, and, ultimately, to His love expressed so eloquently in dying for us on the Cross.”

Sometimes, in these trying times, it’s good to look up, not to ask why, but Who, and know there’s a God who is beautiful and can put a song in our hearts.

God of the Song



God of the rhythm, God of the beat
God of the music, God of dancing feet
God of the galaxies swirling in space
God of the seasons, God of the race
 
God of the melody deep in my heart
God of the whole and God of the part
God of the orbiting stars and the sun
God of the millions and God of the one
 
Sing to me, Jesus, sing loud of Your love
Sing to the pulse of the stars up above
Sing with the voice of the dove and the lark
Sing to the beat of my trembling heart.
 
My God who created the seasons and songs
To Whom every lilt, every cadence belongs
The song of the Saviour beats loudest of all
It’s the song of His grace, it’s the song of His call.
 
I’ll sing to You, Jesus, I’ll sing from my heart
Of the love that You’ve had for me right from the start
Delight of my life, faithful God, true and strong
Creator of music, the God of the Song